3/30/15: Anchored No Name Harbor at the southern tip of Key Biscayne Key. Key Largo tomorrow.

Nice anchorage and sunset in No Name Harbor.

3/31/15: Uneventful sail to Key Largo. Passed sailboats going north and south. Needed to anchor outside the entrance to Key Largo to wait for the tide due to our 5.5 draft. Tom was on the phone with the dockmaster for further instructions. Tricky maneuvers here.  

Once we were able to get by "crash corner" as the locals call it. We literally entered paradise. With many spectacular canal homes.

We met up with our friends and enjoyed a nice reunion catching up, with a leisurely dinner at Sharkey's.

Very comfortable night at the dock at Marina Del Mar.

3/28/15 headed off shore. Next stop the Keys

3/24/15 to 3/27/15 in North Palm Beach Marina

We explored Vero Beach for 2 days by shuttle bus to area shops and the beach. The highlight of the beach trip was seeing a huge fish jump out of the water a few times. Tarpon?.

We continue to meet so many nice people from all over mostly headed north. Our favorite meal so far has been chicken parm. and brownies!! It paid off freezing leftovers from meals we had prior to leaving. It has made it easy on the matie so far.

 Kathy purchased a new lime green snorkel set at the dive shop, since the blue one is in a place we have not looked yet!!! We caught up on boat chores, laundry and will set out early for Hobe Sound. The monkees picked out a great book for me. I have already finished " true colors" by Kristen Hannah. It was hard to put down.

I started a new book "The Elegant Gathering of White Snows" by Kris Radish, which is a fun read so far. I've also started a few art projects. I'm glad I brought lots to do, it's keeping me out of the Captain's hair!!! We made a quick stop in Ft. Pierce to top off our ice. It was the best slide by hand off that we  have ever done. No stinking stopping for TomKat! It was awesome! The Ft. Pierce and St. Lucie inlets were  full of dolphins. Tom let the First Matie take control for a bit. She even wore the appropriate boating apparel!

It was an overcast but we made it to Hobe Sound anchorage dry. We have seen many osprey nests all along the ICW. They are entertaining to watch as they circle around and back to their nests. Tom went swimming at our anchorage, where the water was warm & clean. Kathy passed on this activity!  Sunrises and sunsets have been spectacular. With lots of gulf stream clouds in the distance.

 Jupiter Inlet lighthouse was a grand sight as we cruised by. I have many songs by Glenn Yarborough stuck in my head as we meander down the ICW. My "Altered Sister" BJ made me a copy of his CD that I put on my Ipod. I'm enjoying it immensely! Thank you!

 We headed to North Palm Beach Marina after 6 bridges in 14 miles.

We needed to wait for half of them so not too bad. Arrived about 2 hours before torrential rain hit. I had already taken a shuttle to publix and waded back to the van with our supplies! We will stay for 2 night due to weather and hopefully head just off shore to head south.

3/20/15 to 3/23/15 ICW update

After a little hiccup with the water pump impeller & the drama subsided, TOMKAT was ready for her next adventure. Captain Tom had a spare part and he replaced it and we were only an hour later than we wanted to be. Thank you to our wonderful neighbor Susan for her speedy delivery of me to the boat in her fancy sports car. She even handed us the boat lines to get us on our way.

We are also thankful for our awesome neighbors Jack, Denette  & Bonnie who keep an eagle eye on the homestead so we can travel with less worry.
We left with variable fog conditions but  no bridge opening delays which was nice. Anchored in South Daytona due to continued fog.

After it was too late we discovered a cast a way barrel of monkees.

I let them know if they were going to stay on this trip they would need to be "Matie" assistants  and help with chores and fun!!

So we will see how that goes. Water Temp is 60 degrees in Daytona. Friends have asked how we eat on the boat. Captain Tom said very well! Turkey salad for lunch and Chicken Teriyaki & veggies for dinner! On Saturday, foggy conditions persisted in the AM but improved steadily in the morning. We made great time motoring & motor sailing through pretty New Symrna Beach and Titusville. No problems with any bridges and the Haul Over Canal did not disappoint us with a few manatee sightings. We also saw may Ospreys, dolphins and even a pink flamingo! Many fisherman were out enjoying the beautiful sunny Sunday.

Water temp in Titusville are 80 degrees! We encountered the Melbourne Airshow with fighter jets and the Navy Blue Angels flying formations right over the boat.
This was a great surprise to get to go thru there at the right time. One jet flew so low and close that we thought it was going thru the halyards.

The monkees helped make grilled cheese & Swedish meatballs for todays eats! We also saw Siren Song a boat from Alaska that we met the crew 2 years ago in Hadley Harbor. On Monday we left at the crack of 7:15am as soon as Captain Tom could see the buoys. No beauty sleep for the matie today. We passed Emme a sailboat from Maine, we know,  about 15 miles north of Vero Beach,  and chatted with them as they headed north. We are now in Vero Beach and are nicely connected to Wifi. Had a glorious hot shower. Sunshowers are great but......
We will go into town & the beach tomorrow and stay another night before continuing on our journey. The weather may be an issue, so we will wait until tomorrow to plan. will post pics tomorrow.

ON THE WATER AGAIN!

After almost 2 years, TomKat is on the move again to our next adventure. We moved her from her Satsuma berth to Palm Coast Marina. 

We almost forgot how spectacular sunsets are on the water. Never gets old.

We enjoyed a couple of nights at Jacksonville Landing. Having dinner with cousins Brenda & Dave Bolton at Fionn MacCall Irish Pub.

Back in Palm Coast! Love the view of Washington Oaks from the water.

Stay tuned for posts from where ever the winds take us!